On August 22 - 26, 2009, Ulan-Ude hosted a scientific conference "Philosophy and Social Sciences in Developing Countries" within the framework of the international Russian-Mongolian-Chinese seminar "Globalization and Developing Countries".
The conference was opened by the Corresponding member of the Institute of Mongolian Studies, Buddhology and Tibetology of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IMBT). RAS B. V. Bazarov.
A. V. Damdinov, Minister of Education and Science of the Republic of Buryatia; Xia Cunya, Head of the Chinese delegation, Vice-Director of the College of Humanities and Social Studies of the Petroleum University of China; Luvsandamba Dashniam, Head of the Mongolian delegation, Senior Researcher at the Institute of Philosophy, Sociology and Law of the Mongolian Academy of Sciences (IFSP), addressed the conference participants with greetings.
The plenary session was opened by B. V. Bazarov's report "Spiritual aspects of the Central Asian civilizational space". According to the speaker, the need to study spiritual components, and in particular religious and philosophical components, in civilizational and geopolitical studies is dictated by the fact that many problems and phenomena of a socio-cultural nature can be understood through deciphering the codes of religious dogmas, even those whose understanding is currently lost. Therefore, the exegesis of religious tradition and the appeal to its written sources are relevant in the analysis of many social processes of our time. The report also drew attention to the activities of "new religious movements". They are used by some politicians, the speaker noted, as a tool for "hacking" not only traditional religion and culture, but also national culture in general, as a powerful means of manipulating public consciousness in the desired direction. Having" disarmed " peoples spiritually, it is no longer necessary to use military force against them. It is no coincidence that the Central Asian region has recently become the object of special attention of missionaries and preachers, who mostly represent these movements. The report emphasized that some Western experts predict the maturation of new ethno-religious conflicts, in addition to the existing ones.
The report of the director of the Institute of Chinese Marxism at the University of Petroleum of China Tsokzhiltu gave an overview of the state of Marxist teaching in China. According to the speaker, modern Chinese Marxism strives to use all the achievements of scientific thought. Environmental studies have become particularly relevant. According to the Tsokzhiltu figurative expression, in each of the periods of its development, China had its own color. In our time, the red color has changed to green.
Luvsandamba Dashnam in his report "Scientific research of Philosophy in Mongolia: goals and achievements" noted that the modern scientific approach in philosophy was developed with the establishment of the Institute of Philosophy, Sociology and Law of the Academy of Sciences of Mongolia. The Institute has trained 50 doctors of Science in various scientific specialties and published about 180 books. Trudy akademikov Ch. Zhugder, S. Norovsambuu, G. Luvsantseren, and Dr. D. Dashjamts were published in many countries of the world. Mongolian philosophers face the challenges of developing international scientific cooperation, improving the theoretical level of research, and supporting young scientists.
In the report of the deputy. The Buryat-Mongolian cultural, civilizational and philosophical traditions were considered by the director of the Institute S. Y. Lepekhov. It was noted that the Mongolian culture integrated the regions of Central and East Asia into a single cultural and civilizational whole, establishing a universal model of interaction between secular and sacred authorities, which have (what is important to emphasize) different ethno-cultural roots. It was through the prism of these civilizational criteria that the entry of Buryats into the Russian Empire was perceived. The world outside the Buryat ethnic community, to which it was included as an integral part, was conceived as: 1) the Russian imperial state community; 2) the Mongol-speaking cultural community dating back to the Genghis Khan Empire, which in different contexts could be interpreted both as a state entity and as a civilizational one; 3) the Buddhist civilization. It is possible to note a tendency towards convergence of all three identifications, in which the Russian Empire was perceived as a part of the Buddhist civilization, since it was ruled by the Russian Empire.-
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The Mongol Khans ' patronage of Buddhism was considered an indisputable fact in many Central and East Asian historiographies. In such conditions, the speaker believes, the mobilization of civilizational identity contributed to the development of public consciousness, and in this case interethnic conflicts were eliminated to the greatest extent. This is the most acceptable way for a well-known Buryat religious and public figure, Agvan Dorzhiev. Based on his retrospective views on the development of inter-civilizational relations in the Central Asian region, A. Dorzhiev believed that peaceful interaction with Christian civilization was possible. If we trace the civilizational worldview of other prominent Buryat religious figures, it is easy to find typological similarities.
Zhambal Adya (IFSP) made a report on "The formation of political science in Mongolia". He noted that the Mongols have an ancient and rich tradition of political thought, the origins of which relate to the Xiongnu Empire, and the first literary monument can be considered the "Secret History of the Mongols"*. From the beginning of the 20th century to the 1990s, political thought in Mongolia developed mainly within the framework of the Marxist paradigm, and this period is associated with a number of achievements in the study of social life and political history of the country. Although political science was not formally recognized as an independent science at that time. It was only after the democratic revolution of 1990, which resulted in pluralism of opinions and social liberation, that it was officially recognized as an independent scientific field. Political science was taught at the National University of Mongolia and other universities, and the Association of Political Scientists was established. The works of political scientists in Mongolia are translated into English and Russian, and translations of Western political scientists are published in Mongolian.
In the report of the deputy. Director of the Tenger Institute (Mongolia) D. Dorjsuren discussed the problems of national security in Mongolia. The speaker noted that the new constitution of the country is the first document that sets out the concept of national security. It contains: "The Law on the National Security Council of Mongolia", "The Law on the National Security of Mongolia", "The Law on the Central Security Service", "The Concept of National Security of Mongolia". Among Mongolia's national priorities, independence, sovereignty and inviolability of borders are the main ones. The speaker noted that various methods are used to implement the national security policy: maintaining a balance of power, an open foreign policy, non-participation in alliances, maintaining the status of a nuclear-free region, which provide for the influence of not only a geographical factor, but also a political and economic one. Along with them, such a factor as the country's international reputation in the world community is also taken into account.
Report of the Dean of the Faculty of Social and Political Education of the Institute of Humanities Studies of the University of Petroleum of China (In-t Humanit. research) Ho Hongbo was devoted to discussing the importance of "moral" adjustment of society during the transition period. The speaker noted that currently much attention is paid to the analysis of technological and financial systems in order to find the origins of the global financial crisis. But we should not lose sight of the fact that the financial crisis is also a crisis of ethical relations, in particular honesty and trust. Its cause is connected not only with commercial fraud, but also with the crisis of accuracy. The stable state of the system of values, morals and faith is the basis and limiter that governs people's behavior. Moral adjustment is the key to success in a society in transition. The crisis of honesty and trust has shown that the new moral system has not yet developed, and the old one has begun to lose its effectiveness. The crisis of ethical relations affects the further transformation of society, weakening faith in a new way of social life. The market economy needs honesty and trust as the basis and symbol of a modern civilized society. As economic instruments, honesty and trust are not only essential for a market economy, but also serve as the foundation of self-discipline for any economic entity. The speaker's conclusion is that a market economy cannot exist and develop successfully without honesty and trust.
Report by Ma Longqian (Research) center for Literary Theory and Aesthetics of Shandong University) "The theory of "neutrality" and "personality" - to characterize the structure of the object and subject-
* A number of monographs by Academician Ch. Zhugder were devoted to the research of political thought in Mongolia from ancient times to the beginning of the XX century.
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ta in traditional Chinese literature " was devoted to theoretical problems of Chinese philology. The concept of" neutrality", the speaker notes, is a core category in traditional Chinese literature, and the theory of" personal " is its most important characteristic. Personality is presented as the starting point and end result of creativity. Both of these concepts pay great attention to the dialogue and structural relationships between subject and object. The most complete representation of the structure of subject and object in traditional Chinese literature corresponds to the desire to achieve harmonious unity between man and society, man and nature, as well as between people themselves.
Yuan Lihong, Dean of the Faculty of History and Politics of the Institute of Humanities Studies, analyzed the environmental situation in the country and the challenges facing the humanities and social sciences related to its drastic changes. According to the speaker, the environmental situation in China may develop in the future according to two different scenarios. One of them is based on the priority of preserving the health of the nation and fostering a careful attitude of man to nature. The other allows exceeding environmental restrictions and is aimed at maximizing the development of natural resources. In any case, a great responsibility falls on the humanities and social sciences in China in terms of influencing the solution of the problem. At the same time, the factor of communication between the subject of building an "ecological civilization" is very important, and most importantly, it is necessary to restructure the entire system of production and consumption, to overcome the alienation of man from nature.
Wu Chenjun, Dean of the Art History Department of the Institute of Humanities Studies, reviewed a historical retrospective and a new project for teaching classical arts in Chinese educational institutions. The system of art teaching that has developed over 50 years in China has reached a fairly high level. Art teaching has become an important part of the educational process in China and is a necessary element in the basic concept of learning. The study of traditional arts allows talents to be revealed, contributes to the development of national identity, obtaining encyclopedic professional knowledge and the formation of a fully developed personality.
Pan Zhongjie (Institute of Humanit. research) - development of traditional and modern culture in the framework of the "New May 4 Cultural Movement". It was emphasized that, despite the influence of postmodernism, the trend towards the revival of traditional Chinese culture prevails.
Wang Wencheng (Institute of Literature, Shandong University) in his report examined the development of modern Chinese aesthetics. He noted that over the past 30 years, the development of aesthetic theory and practice in China has been influenced by the processes of globalization in the mode of dialogue between Western and Eastern cultures in two directions. In the first case, the adoption and assimilation of foreign elements within the framework of cultural modernization is encouraged, in the second case, the "independence style" is preferred, focused on improving and developing one's own national traditions in "natural" conditions.
D. Bold-Erdeni (IFSP) focused on the study of the political party system in Mongolia. He examined the political principles and goals of existing parties, the specifics of the parliamentary process and the specific conditions of political struggle, political mentality and culture in modern Mongolia.
Jargalsaikkhan Batzhargal (IFSP) presented a report on Mongolian sociological research. It was noted that while in the 1970s Mongolian sociologists focused their attention on problems of social structure (with labor collectives and cultural communities being the main targets), in the 1990s the focus of research interests shifted to problems related to social modernization, privatization, crime, poverty and prostitution. The history of Mongolian sociology can be described as the history of applied social science. The development of Mongolian sociology spans three periods: the formation of sociological science within the Marxist paradigm (1970 - 1990); the development of modern sociology (in the Western interpretation, as opposed to the Marxist one) (1990 - 2000); the stage of systematic research (from 2000 to the present).
The Oldov Khatanbold Report (IFSP) examined the state of democratic power in Mongolia. Mongolian public administration has been familiar with the elements of democracy since its inception, but the crucial transition to democracy in the modern sense is linked to international partnerships. There was a need to develop comparable indicators and indexes of the country's democratic development, including reliable recording of the country's economic development.
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levels of civil society development, human rights, freedom of the press, the level of corruption in the state apparatus, etc. These criteria were developed on the basis of internationally approved methods and tests. Despite the fact that the economic and social conditions of life in Mongolia developed in a complex and contradictory way between 2005 and 2008, the level of consistency of expert assessments obtained as a result of research turned out to be acceptable. Thus, the indicator of the development of civic consciousness, legality and civil rights is recorded at the level of 3.2 points. Indicators of government representativeness and accountability reached 2.9 points. The level of development of civil society and popular representation was estimated almost the same-2.93, while the level of development of democratic non-governmental organizations, according to experts, reached only 0.1 points. The overall assessment of the level of democracy in the country is 3.0 points.
The necessary measures to strengthen democracy in Mongolia should include: guaranteed social representation in government on the basis of the constitution and legislation; improvement of electoral procedures and the electoral process; strengthening the role of non-governmental organizations in monitoring the government's activities in the field of human rights and freedom of speech; ensuring the independence of the media; implementation of national educational programs in the field of improving the legal and democratic culture; regular research on the state of human rights, democratic government, corruption and extensive media coverage of the results of these studies.
In the joint report of V. A. Balkhanov and S. S. Imekhelova (Buryat State University) "Dialectical realism as a philosophy of Eurasianism at the beginning of the XXI century", it was noted that the Eurasian concept of understanding the past, present and future of Russia is not only relevant for its peoples and neighbors from the CIS countries, but also strategically important for all developing countries and regions. According to the concept of Eurasianism ,the "involvement" of the European and Asian components of a single Eurasianism is realized at the metaphysical level. The philosophy of dialectical realism, which has been developed in recent years, satisfies the conditions of such "involvement". Its essence lies in the fact that each individual culture-nation, each of its subjects contains the "energy" of the neighboring and other nations-cultures. Eurasian philosophy, according to the speakers, is a spiritual synthesis of Eastern and Western principles, corresponding to geopolitical parameters, a common historical fate, and can become a new paradigm for the revival of Russia, give an example of new ideas of intercivilizational relations in the post-industrial information society.
In the report of the head. The Center for Oriental Manuscripts and Woodcuts (IMBT) of Ts. P. Vanchikova considered the current situation in the Buddhist denomination in Buryatia. The speaker drew attention to the fact that since the 1990s there has been a clear trend of religious revival in the republic, characterized by the restoration of old and construction of new Buddhist temples, the development of spiritual education, an increase in the number of believers and a rejuvenation of their composition.
"Buryat researchers in the process of national and cultural revival" is the topic of the report by T. D. Skrynnikova (IMBT). She noted that the identity crisis caused by the destruction of the socialist ideology provoked the actualization of ethno-national ideological myths that contribute to the construction of a national idea for each ethnic group in Russia. In accordance with the all-Russian trend, in the process of identifying the Buryat community, traditional culture (or in the terminology of the national elite, "the culture of our ancestors") is considered as a mechanism of unification and integration. In this discourse, much attention is paid to the following paradigms: national origin, identity, and ethnic unity. Buryat researchers take part in the development of formulations of the language of national and cultural revival, as well as in the construction of the boundaries of the Buryat community.
E. S. Lepekhova (Institute of Philosophy of the Russian Academy of Sciences) analyzed the controversy between famous Japanese Buddhist thinkers - Sita and Kukai-leaders of new schools for the early Heian period - Tendai and Shingon. She noted that the dispute in the history of Buddhism has always been a factor contributing to the formation of new philosophical schools. It was also a way of strengthening legitimacy and securing a higher official status relative to other schools.
S. P. Nesterkin (IMBT) traced the development of the historical and philosophical tradition in Buddhism. In his opinion, Central Asian Buddhism performs two functions: propaedeutical and therapeutic.-
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and hermeneutical. Propaedeutics involved preparing students for a consistent perception of relatively simple philosophical systems, which became more complex as they moved to the knowledge of the philosophy of the school to which the adept belonged. The hermeneutical function was to classify the entire philosophical teaching of Buddhism, according to how its individual directions reflected the "Teaching of the Buddha". The peculiarity of Buddhist inclusivism was that the concepts of different schools that differed from each other were considered not as erroneous, but as abbreviated versions of them, which were fully contained in the philosophy of only a particular adept's school. The main difference between the two schools was the interpretation of the doctrine of emptiness (shunya). The concepts of the schools ranged from treating shunya as "universal negation" in the negativist sense (Gelug school) to interpreting it as a positive reality (Jonang school).
"Symbolic personalities in the modern Buryat renaissance" is the topic of the report by D. D. Amogolonova (IMBT). The process of renewal of Buddhism that is taking place today, she noted, differs from the "renovationism" of the 1920s. If at that time "renewal" was reduced to attempts to adapt religion to social realities and the desire to survive in the conditions of total influence of communist doctrine, then today in Russia there really is freedom of religion and the problems of religious renewal are not limited the need to adapt to political ideology. An important feature of the modern process of revival and renewal, the speaker believes, is the fact that this process depends, on the one hand, on the positions and worldview of the clergy, and on the other - on the social climate in Russia and Buddhist believers.
The report of P. K. Varnavsky (IMBT) considered Buryat Buddhism in the context of globalization. The speaker believes that, despite the favorable context, Buryat Buddhism has not yet developed a clear strategy for action in the context of globalization, and its intuitive response to global development trends is rather contradictory. In search of resources to maintain its position in society, the Buddhist Sangha actively develops new formats and technologies of activity developed and provided by globalization, which often leads to simplification and "profanation" of the dogmatic and cultural content of Buddhism, but it allows it to "cross" with other cultural traditions and in such a modified form direct it to other social networks., cultural, and political contexts. Thus, in response to globalization, Buddhism contributes to the formation of a" global " religious and cultural meta-narrative that is understandable and transparent to the entire population of the republic, which contributes to the formation of a multi-ethnic community within its borders. At the same time, we have to admit that modern Buryat Buddhism is an example of latent resistance to globalization. Indeed, globalization is implicitly perceived as a threat, not as a source and factor of development. That is why Buddhist hierarchs, in their search for ways of development, focus on "external" factors - the state and / or the resource of ethnicity, and not on the actual religious potential of religion. The Sangha's increasingly active participation in public and political life is aimed at achieving the main strategic goal of justifying the status of an "indigenous religion" and strengthening its socio - political positions. At the same time, traditional Buddhism retains a noticeable desire to preserve ethno-confessional borders, and ethnicity becomes a specific resource for preserving religion, and then the latter acquires primordial ethnogenetic connotations. Thus, the speaker concludes, the logic of the development of Buryat Buddhism allows us to conclude that its integration into global trends of religiosity occurs more out of necessity and has the character of protective adaptation, rather than being an element of a progressive strategy for the development of the Buddhist denomination in modern conditions.
Yu. Zh. Jabon's report was devoted to the philosophical aspects of Tibetan medicine. In her opinion, a correct and adequate understanding of the concepts of Tibetan medicine is impossible without mastering the philosophical views of Buddhism. According to Buddhist philosophy, the result of fundamental "ignorance" - the cause of "samsara" - is the so-called three mental poisons: passion, hatred, and obscuration. They are the direct causes of the imbalance of the three basic energies in the physical body: (rLung, mKhris, Badkan-tib.). The imbalance of these three factors is, according to Tibetan medicine, the cause of all diseases that manifest in humans.
The conceptual content and essential characteristics of the tradition were considered in the report of G. E. Manzanov (IMBT). Religious experience, he notes, is embodied in religious beliefs.
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traditions that mediate the experience of a different reality for those who have never had such an experience. Religious tradition is the collective memory of those moments of the other world, into which the reality of everyday life breaks. But tradition not only mediates religious experience, but also "tames" it. By its very nature, religious experience is a constant threat to public order in the sense of a particular socio-political status quo, as well as in the more fundamental sense of life. Religious tradition is a defense mechanism that routines religious experience through institutionalization. Routine religious experience is one of the most important social functions of religious institutions. Religion is an important component of culture. It largely determines the main contours of ethnic culture and plays a huge role in the history of an ethnic group. Religion as a component of culture, once established, can exist through the transmission, accumulation and reproduction of religious experience. Religious tradition in relation to religion is a system of connections between the present and the past; with the help of this system, a certain selection is made, religious experience is stereotyped and stereotypes are transmitted, which are then reproduced again. The reproduction of religiosity in the minds of a part of the Buryat people, on the one hand, and the formation of a non - religious worldview, on the other, the speaker concludes, act as opposite and at the same time interdependent processes that develop as a whole in the problem of the attitude of the Buryat population of the Baikal region to religion.
The report by I. R. Garry (IMBT) discussed the teachings of the Nyingmap Tibetan Buddhist school as presented in the work "The Crystal Mirror of Philosophical Systems" by an 18th-century Tibetan scholar. Tugana Lobsana Choikyi-Nims.
D. V. Ayusheeva (IMBT) considered the reasons for the existence of Buddhism in the United States. These include the influence of upbringing in families where Buddhism is the ancestral religion; the preference for Buddhist philosophy - intellectual, symbolic and esoteric; the attractiveness of the significance of one's own efforts in Buddhism; overcoming everyday life as a protest movement; the ability to provide a more complete spiritual life.
The topic of the speech of I. E. Elaeva (IBT) is the identity of ethnic groups in the Baikal region. The main change in the identification strategies of the population of Buryatia, she noted, is associated with a significant strengthening of Russian identity. In general, in the sample population, state-civil identity not only leads among ethnopolitical categories, but also successfully competes with groups of everyday practices. This trend is also typical for older age groups of the population, among which identification with Soviet people remains quite strong to this day, and the coexistence of Russian and Soviet identities is less and less contrasting. Among the most important qualities of a "true Russian" respondents of both Russian and Buryat nationality note: "compliance with laws, respect for the Constitution of Russia", "sense of responsibility for the country"," good knowledge of the Russian language " - 73.5% (and the importance of this quality is recognized by both Russians-75.5%, and Buryats-70%), "patriotism, love for Russia" - 70.1%, "belonging to Russian citizenship" - 69.3%. In the image of Russia, the basis for pride is inherited values. Also, in the identification matrices of both Buryats and Russians living in Buryatia, one of the leading rank positions is occupied by local identity.
This is due, according to the speaker, both to the high subjective status of regional and local identification strategies, and to a kind of spatial segregation of the region caused by economic reasons that limit freedom of movement, etc. At the same time, the traditional Buryat rodozemlyatcheskaya solidarity contributes to the maintenance of an intense tone of local orientation. Kinship and fraternity are reflected by modern Buryats not so much as a specific way of identification, but rather as a special form of social interaction. At the same time, there are ethnic nuances in determining the vectors of identification choice and the intensity of the manifestation of certain identification preferences. For example, for Buryats, ethnic and religious identities have a higher subjective significance. Most often, ethnic categorization is based on attribution of cultural and linguistic characteristics. The dominant position in the system of ethnically determining factors still belongs to culturally oriented characteristics. Thus, the speaker concludes, the society is characterized by a bizarre symbiosis of traditional and modernist values.
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The final plenary session summed up the results of the conference. Attention was drawn to the fact that the participants in the traditional Russian-Mongolian-Chinese seminar "Globalization and Developing Countries" have significantly "rejuvenated". The high level of reports heard was noted. Promising areas of scientific cooperation between humanitarians of the three countries are outlined and the topics of the next conference within the framework of the seminar, which will be held in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia in 2010, are discussed.
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